An oil and gas merchant, Capt. Emmanuel Iheanacho, has attributed the persistent scarcity of petrol to monopoly of the product by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

Iheanacho, also the Chairman, Integrated Oil and Gas Ltd., told NAN in Lagos on Tuesday that the inability of NNPC to create a window for private importers to import petrol also contributed to the scarcity.

According to him, the current shortage in fuel importation gap was caused by the landing cost margin of N171 per litre and the selling cost pegged at N145 per litre.

Iheanacho said it was unrealistic for marketers to import and sell at that rate.

“The selling of the product at N145 per litre is no longer feasible with the current exchange rate.

“Shortage of foreign exchange and increase in crude prices have made it unprofitable to import petrol and sell same at N145 per litre.

“The problem is that importation of petrol is being handled, almost 100 per cent, by NNPC, while private importers backed out because the increase in crude price has made the landing cost high,” he said.

Iheanacho said that the marketers’ huge debts of over N800bn had also contributed to their inability to import petrol.

He said that most independent marketers had closed their companies due to inability to pay their workers.

Iheanacho urged the Federal Government to settle all the outstanding debts owed marketers since 2015.

According to him, commercial banks have started taking over the property and tank farms of some companies that could not repay their loans.

NAN reports that loading of petrol had commenced in Apapa.

A visit to Apapa on Tuesday showed that hundreds of trucks were on the queue waiting to load the product at Total, Forte Oil, Oando Plc, MRS, NIPCO and other private depots.